


You've Got a Friend in Me

by BeStillMySlashyHeart



Category: Roswell New Mexico (TV 2019)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, F/M, Fluff, Friendship, M/M, Maria POV, POV Outsider, the angst is really very minor
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-01-27
Updated: 2019-01-27
Packaged: 2019-10-17 23:19:05
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,882
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17569838
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BeStillMySlashyHeart/pseuds/BeStillMySlashyHeart
Summary: Maria finds out about Michael and Alex in the worst possible way. After that, well what's a girl to do except help her old friend out?aka Maria accidentally ends up in the middle of Michael and Alex's nonsense and goes on to prove what a BAMF friend she is





	You've Got a Friend in Me

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you to my lovely betas caitlesshea and allthehearteyes!

Maria stood up to pull her shorts back on. She couldn’t quite keep the smile off of her face. She certainly hadn’t been wrong when she said that Michael Guerin was a great lay. They’d done this a couple of times before but it had been a while. Neither one of them said much as they finished getting dressed, but it was a comfortable silence. She wasn’t in his trailer for the conversation, after all.

She was just pulling her shirt down when the trailer door swung open and Alex Manes, to her utter shock, stepped on in. He froze when he saw her and she felt Guerin tense up behind her. 

“Alex? What are you doing here?” She asked her friend. He didn’t answer right away. He didn’t even look at her, too busy staring over her shoulder. She twisted to see Guerin’s face and was surprised to see him looking away from both of them. She turned back to Alex as he finally answered her.

“I was just leaving.” And he did just that.

“Alex!” Guerin called after him. Looking back at him, the pieces quickly fell into place.

“Oh hell no.” Maria let out as she ran after her friend. She caught up to Alex as he reached his truck. Grabbing his arm, she turned him back towards her. “Alex, I didn’t know. I’m sorry.”

He shook his head. “No, don’t worry about it. It’s nothing.”

It was very clearly not nothing and she opened her mouth to call him on his bullshit but stopped when she took in the look on his face. She worried her bottom lip and let go of his arm. “Just-” She took a deep breath. She thought she knew the answer to this but she wasn’t sure she wanted him to confirm it. “Just tell me Guerin wasn’t the guy from the museum.” 

He looked at the ground and didn’t say anything. That was all the answer she needed. He looked up and stared behind her for a long moment before getting in his truck. “I’ve gotta go. I’ll see you later.”

She stepped back and let him leave. As soon as he turned the corner and was out of sight, Maria spun on her heel to face Guerin only to find a closed door.

Like hell, she thought. She hurried back to the trailer and threw the door open. Stomping inside, she was prepared to give him a piece of her mind but froze at the sight of him. She had never seen Michael Guerin look small before. He was sitting on the floor with his back against the cabinet and his knees in his chest. 

She felt some of the anger leave her and she crouched to sit next to him. “You’re an asshole.” She told him. “Alex is my friend.”

“I know.” He replied. “I wasn’t thinking about it at the time. I’m sorry.” 

Maria was shocked. She wasn’t sure she’d ever heard him apologize before. She leaned back into the cabinet and tilted her head up. Neither one of them said anything for a few minutes.

Eventually, Maria broke the silence. “So…,” she dragged out. “You’re the guy from the museum.”

She felt him startle next to her. Out of the corner of her eye she saw his head whip around to face her but she didn’t look at him. 

“How do you know about the museum?” He asked. Maria was surprised at the tone of his voice. He sounded almost hopeful?

“Alex told me. Back in high school.” She told him. “He had this great date to the museum, which was surprising because he’d always hated that museum until then. Afterwards, it was like his favorite place in Roswell.” She shifted her legs. “Anyway. The next day or whatever he told me all about it but wouldn’t tell me who the guy was. We even talked about it a couple of weeks ago and he still wouldn’t tell me.” Now she turned her head. “Was that his idea or yours?” 

She felt him shrug. “We never really talked about it. We just never told anyone.” 

Maria thought for a moment the let out a sharp laugh. “You are both such dumbasses.” He glared at her. “No, really. The two of you never talked about it so both of you are sitting here 10 years later thinking the other one wanted to keep it a secret. From what I can tell right now? Neither one of you wanted that. You just went along with it because you thought that’s what the other one thought.” 

With that, she pushed herself to her feet. She looked around and finding her purse, started for the door. “For the record, Guerin, this is never happening again, ok?” He nodded, not saying anything.

She paused before leaving, wondering if she should say something more. It truthfully was not any of her business but clearly these two wouldn’t actually speak to each other so she might as well. “And Michael?” She continued. That got his attention. “Before he left, after the museum,” she bit her lip before taking a deep breath. “Alex used to say that he would stay in Roswell forever if only you kept kissing him.” She finished with a small smile. 

Her smile grew when she saw the look on his face. Like he’d been sucker punched but was happy about it. 

She left him to his thoughts. 

____

It had been a couple of days since the trailer when Alex finally came to the Wild Pony. Maria spotted him as soon as he walked in but she was too busy with a customer to greet him. She hadn’t seen him since that day. After the first couple phone calls went unanswered she’d decided to leave him be. 

The bar was busy tonight but she did her best to keep an eye on Alex. He was keeping to the group he came in with but she saw his eyes stray to wear Michael was leaning heavily against the bar with a drink clutched firmly in his hand. 

While she hadn’t seen Alex, she felt like she couldn’t get away from Michael. Since the ranch he was working on was sold to the government, he’d more or less become a permanent fixture at the bar. At least he was a mostly quiet drunk...so long as he was left alone. Just the other night, she’d had to call Max to come pick him up after he’d gotten into a slugfest with another guy over some petty bullshit. Maria still wasn’t sure what it had been about but she did know the other guy started it. That was Guerin’s way. He rarely started the fights, but he just didn’t know how to stop himself once he got into it.

Tonight looked like it was well on its way to another drunken evening for him when Isobel popped in. She rarely made an appearance at the Wild Pony so Maria was surprised when she saw her blonde hair waltzing in the doorway. She watched as Isobel looked around the bar before making a beeline for Michael. A hushed, fervent conversation later, Michael was throwing some bills on the bar and following Isobel out the door. Maria followed them with her gaze. She’d always found that relationship a little odd. Michael and the Evans twins. Michael and Isobel were clearly close and Isobel and Max were obviously a package deal but Michael and Max alternated between being best friends and hating each other’s guts. Though admittedly, in recent years, it had been pretty firm on the hating each other side of things. And yet, they were never far apart. Maybe it was Isobel that kept them all tied together but Maria was sure there had to be something else. She just wasn’t sure what. 

She was ripped from her thoughts when a hand gently grasped her elbow. She jerked towards the other person only to see that it was Alex. He held his hand up sheepishly. “I called your name but you didn’t seem to hear me.” 

She smiled. “Sorry. Lost in thought there for a second. What can I get you?” 

He shook his head. “I don’t need a drink. But if you’ve got a second to talk?” He looked bashful which tickled Maria to no end. Alex had been relatively shy in high school but every time she’d seen him since his enlistment he’d been more sure of himself. Whether or not he was may be debatable but he sure knew how to act like it nowadays. The fact that he was getting all shy again made her miss his younger self just a little bit. 

She looked around the bar but it didn’t seem too busy. She caught the eye of Adam, the other bartender. She nodded her head towards the back with a questioning look and he waved her off. 

She turned back to Alex. “Yeah sure. I’ve got a few minutes. Follow me.” 

She led him into the back room that was supposed to be for employees only but no one else would care too much. And it was the only place in the bar she could guarantee privacy. 

When Alex shut the door, she began, “Alex, I’m sorry.”

He shook his head. “You don’t have to apologize for anything.” 

She reached out and grabbed his hand and held it between her own. “If I had known, I never-”

“I know.” He cut her off gently, squeezing her hand. “Which is why you don’t need to apologize.” He smiled at her and she smiled back. “That’s why I wanted to apologize. I acted a bit like a dick and I shouldn’t have. You didn’t deserve that.”

She huffed a laugh. “Alex you weren’t a dick.” He started to interrupt but she shook her head and squeezed his hand again. “You walked in on me and the guy you love after we had sex.” He looked away. She winced but carried on. “I’d say you were super polite about the whole thing. You have nothing to apologize for. Okay?”

She waited until he looked back at her to make sure her point got across. He let out a small smile and nodded. “Okay.”

“Okay.” She repeated and dropped his hand. “Now. Are you okay?”

“I’m fine.” He replied instantly. She just gave him a look. “Really. We aren’t...anything really. Just two guys who hook up from time to time.”

She rolled her eyes. Why couldn’t men just talk about their feelings? It would make everything so much easier. “Riiight.” She dragged out. “You’ve just been hooking up with him from time to time...for over 10 years. And it’s nothing. Nothing at all.” The sarcasm was practically dripping from her voice. 

He shrugged. “But we aren’t.” 

“Why not?” She asked. “And don’t tell me you didn’t want to, Mr. ‘I’d stay in Roswell if only Michael Guerin kept kissing me.’” She nudged his shoulder gently. He hung his head as a blush spread across his cheeks.

“Ok I did want more. But he didn’t.” 

She scoffed at that. After their talk in his trailer she knew he was in deep with Alex. And now that she knew, it was incredibly obvious to see in retrospect. Michael had perfected the longing look.

Alex looked at her quizzically. She tried to contain her smile.

“He’s in love with you. He’s so in love with you it’s kind of ridiculous.” Alex looked at her in disbelief. “I’m serious! After you left, I talked to him. When I told him that you’d told me about your museum date in high school, he looked so happy. Like he couldn’t believe you would tell me about it.” She nudged his shoulder again. “I think he thinks you didn’t want anything more. That it’s all been a secret this whole time because that’s the way you wanted it.”

“I never said that.” Alex objected.

“Okay, but did you ever say that you did want it? The way Michael made it sound was that you guys never really talked about it.” Alex looked at the floor. “Maybe you ought to.”

There was a quick knock at the door before it opened behind Alex. He stepped forward to avoid getting hit. Adam poked his head in. “Sorry but I need you back out here.” He told Maria. She nodded. “Ok, I’ll be right there.”

He left the door open when he turned back to the bar and Maria grabbed at it. Half turned in the doorway she faced Alex. “I’m serious. Just talk to the guy. Figure out what you both want.” 

She waited for him to nod in acknowledgement before heading back to work. The rest of her shift was busy so she didn’t get a chance to talk to Alex again.

Towards the end of the night, Michael came back in sans Isobel. He was making his way to the bar when he was waylaid by Alex. All Alex had to do was lay a hand gently on his arm and he had Michael’s undivided attention. Maria smiled and shook her head at them as Alex tugged him towards the door, Michael not putting up any resistance.

A little while later, while she was closing up, she stepped outside to take out the trash and was greeted by the sight of the two men pressed tightly against each other at the end of the alley. She smiled and threw the trash in the dumpster as loudly as possible, startling them apart. “Really guys? You both have beds that are way more comfortable than a brick wall.”

Michael ducked his head but Alex laughed. It was nice to hear. “Yeah yeah. We’re going.” 

She couldn’t help but laugh when they did no such thing. Instead, Michael ignored her and crowded Alex back into the wall. 

“Seriously guys. The alleyway? That’s just not sanitary.” 

“Oh please. Like you’ve never hooked up back here.” Michael shot back. 

“Hey now, we’re not talking about me here.” She crossed her arms and leaned on the wall next to the door. She didn’t say anything for a moment, just watching them. Both men had big grins on their faces, unable to look away from each other for very long. She couldn’t help but smile. It had been a long time since she’d seen Alex look that happy. And she’s positive she’s never seen Michael with a genuine smile on his face. 

She let them kiss for a moment while she checked her messages but eventually she had to speak up. She wanted to go home sometime tonight and there was a gate at the end of the alley that needed to be locked before she could. “Really, guys. I’m supposed to make sure the alley’s clear when we close. So either you leave or I have to call the cops.” The men broke apart with Alex shooting her a look. Michael didn’t let her bother him; he just diverted his attention to Alex’s neck. She laughed when Alex craned his neck back to give him more space. “Guys!” She yelled at them. “I’m serious. I’m gonna call Max.” 

That got Michael’s attention. He broke away from Alex like she’d thrown water on them. “No need for threats.” He tossed back at her. Still smiling, he backed away from Alex and grabbed his hand. “See you later, DeLuca.” He led the way out to his truck, tugging Alex gently along behind him. 

She shook her head at their antics and quickly locked the gate before going back inside to finish closing up.

 

If she thought that would be the end of it, she was mistaken. 20 minutes later, after finally locking up, she stumbled across a black cowboy hat on the way to her car. She stopped and picked it up, turning it over in her hands. It took her a moment but she quickly realized whose hat it was. Laughing in disbelief she looked around for Michael and Alex. Sure enough, she quickly spotted both men’s cars still in the parking lot. She ventured over to Alex’s since it was closer, fully intending to leave Michael’s hat for him to return when she got a better glimpse of Michael’s truck a few rows back. Or more specifically, the movements of Michael’s truck. 

She briefly debated just leaving the hat and going home but gave up that idea rather quickly. Making her way over, she heard a loud thump and quiet laughter emanating from the bed of the truck. 

Schooling her face, she walked up next to it and peered over the edge. The two were laying side by side - Michael laughing silently with tears streaming down his face and Alex just laying there with his eyes closed shaking his head. 

Maria dropped the hat right onto Michael’s face, startling him. He jolted, causing Alex to open his eyes and pop up onto his elbows as he looked over. When he saw it was Maria, he fell back onto his back. 

“You forgot your hat, Guerin.” She told him. “Drive safe now boys. Or you know, stay here. Whichever.” She winked at Alex and waved goodbye, letting their quiet laughter follow her to her car.

**Author's Note:**

> you can reblog on tumblr here: http://bestillmyslashyheart.tumblr.com/post/182357697529/youve-got-a-friend-in-me-bestillmyslashyheart


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